About

Deirdre Riley is a registered dietitian and nutrition consultant who specializes
in wellness and prevention. She promotes a healthy lifestyle with a focus on nutritious
and delicious foods and believes healthy eating can also be fun. She received her
Master's degree in nutrition from Boston University.

Eat This!

Spicy Corn and Black Bean Salad

I was on Long Island one year celebrating my sister's birthday. If you've ever been to the North Fork, you've seen the endless fields of homegrown vegetables, the sprawling vineyards and the plentiful farm stands. Much of of produce is organically-grown, which makes it even more appealing to me. I couldn't wait to stop off at one of the myriad roadside markets to sample some incredible seasonal and locally grown produce. I was seriously like a really big kid in a really healthy candy store.

So after several minutes of careful deliberation, I settled on a few huge purplish heirloom tomatoes, a dozen ears of sweet golden corn, a pint of deep red strawberries, some peppery arugula and a pint of little husk tomatoes (which look like mini tomatillos, but taste so sweet you can just pop them out of their husks and eat them as is!)

The weekend was a blast and we gobbled up almost everything, save a few ears of corn. So I brought the corn home and decided to make this easy recipe (adapted from epicurious.com), since I had 2 cans of black beans in the pantry.

Directions:
Whisk oil, vinegar, and cumin in large bowl to blend. Add remaining ingredients and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Let stand at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours, tossing occasionally, to allow flavor to develop. Makes 8 servings, about 1 cup each.

My husband and I ate this along with a green salad for dinner. This would also be great as a quesadilla filling, alongside (or instead of) salsa with tortilla chips or as an accompaniment to any sort of Mexican dish.